the ruBBer Band effeCt: five keys to eXPanding your CaPaCity

A pArAdigm shift on time

by layla Fay, consultant, coach & sPeaker, “strateGic keys For Pioneers in construction”

It’s a common lament, “There’s never enough time in the day!” When was the last time these words passed your lips? Earlier today, yesterday, last week maybe? A sense of a shortage of time or lack of capacity can lead even great leaders into a mental state of overwhelm and a feeling of stuck. The reality is we all have 24 hours in a day and unless we discover a new rate of speed for the Earth to spin on its axis, we have to make the best of it. To empower you towards that aim, I want to share with you five strategic keys to help expand not only your capacity, but that of your team to decrease stress and drive greater efficiency.

If you are a business owner or leader in construction you are likely wearing many hats and probably living in the land of diminishing returns, where the diligence of your work is no longer able to drive the results you are seeking. The greater your responsibilities and obligations, the less you can invest your greatest strengths where they are needed most to grow your company, serve your clients and maintain some assembly of work-life balance. Everyone hits a ceiling at some point, the good news, however, is we can grow our skillset and expand our capacity for growth and breakthrough. To breakthrough your ceiling or stuck point and grow your leadership, business and teams to the next level you have to get honest with your capacity. Even when your vision, expertise, products and services are all on-point, it is wise to assess your capacity and sustainable growth options. Here are five ways you can build or recalibrate yourself and your business for increased capacity.

Five strategic keys to expand capacity

1. Growth mindset

Own and model a growth mindset. Acknowledge the possibilities in any given scenario and stay flexible and teachable to learn. When you operate from a healthy mindset, you can decrease your stress and improve cognitive function. Sometimes we need help in breaking up with negative mindsets, or even remnant trauma from past experiences. I know when COVID-19 hit I’d hear it often, “I hope it doesn’t get as bad as the last downturn, I can’t lose it all again.” Challenges we face in business shape how we approach

the next one on the horizon. If you want to access some great tools on mindset and rewiring your thought processes, I recommend checking out Dr. Caroline Leaf’s 21-Day Brain Detox program. She also has a library of books you can choose from and an app called “Switch.”

Committing yourself to a growth mindset increases your capacity for strong decision making and staying agile in an ever-changing economic landscape.

2.One-touch systems

One of the quickest and most thorough ways to increase your capacity is to assess your systems and work-flow processes. It is here you can commonly find culprits of waste on both time and resources. Wherever you can automate or simplify a process it is wise.

Consider your bills. They arrive in the mail or your email inbox. When they arrive do they go directly to accounts payable? Or do they get opened, put back in the inbox and left to be reviewed later? Bills, or mail in general, is a great place to start with a one-touch system. Why touch a bill two, three or even five times when you can touch it once and be done? I get it, if you are owneroperator perhaps you are also accounts payable, no matter – open the bill, set a date to reconcile payment and file it. Don’t allow that piece of paper to waste more of your time. There are so many areas of our daily operations we can assess. Where do you feel your time is most wasted? How can you simplify the process? I like to use the 3D’s: Delegate. Delay. Delete. Is this time waster something only you can handle or is it something you can delegate? Perhaps it’s important, but non-urgent. If so, then delay it. If it’s not important or urgent, delete it and move on!

If you want a great tool to help decrease stress and improve your focus and energy at work, I strongly recommend No-Fail Habits by Michael Hyatt. This quick 120-page read will help you automate some of your daily tasks, as well as provide a template to use company-wide.

Recognize the influence your systems have over the health and productivity of your business and don’t shy away from investing your time and resources to improve in this area – it will benefit performance and has the ability to improve profit margins.

3.Feedback

Often one of the most under-valued elements for leaders today is feedback. I understand the pressures of the work day, intense deadlines and demands don’t leave large margins for lots of chit chat in the construction industry. However, I encourage you to throw some elbows and make room for constructive feedback. Now you don’t have to go diving into the deep end with a full

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360-leadership review (though in season they can be strategic), just make room to check-in with your employees, subs and vendors. How are they doing? What is their perspective on a project? Where can improvements be made? Learn to leverage the power of a well-timed question and use the feedback to generate healthy change, improved communications and process.

4. Expanding & demanding experiences

The “rubber band effect” is one sure way to grow capacity. It is not always the way we would choose to grow and learn, but it is highly effective. When we are met with a requirement to perform in a way we have not done before, like operating new equipment, an impossible deadline, negotiating a multi-million dollar contract, or the like – these demanding experiences create an expanse in our personal capacity. The same is true for a company when sales boom, or a large development breaks ground – the whole team must work together under new levels of pressure to deliver. This process stretches individuals and teams to a new skillset and capacity.

Do not shy away from growth opportunities or over-protect your staff. Sometimes it is these expanding experiences that mine out the gold in your team members and reveal new levels of leadership and untapped potential in your company.

5.Take risks

Last but not least, be willing to take risks! I know you’re the expert and you’ve proven your grit time and time again, but I urge you to keep flexing and keep a willingness to step into the new. You choose. You can be a scout that runs ahead of the pack to see what opportunities lay ahead, or the pioneer who boldly adventures into unknown practices and fields of potential, or you can be the settler who comes in after the scout and the pioneer have done their job and live in the land already cultivated for them. There is no “lose” option in this choice, there are gains all around, but how do you want to show up? How will you face your next challenge or opportunity? You don’t have to say yes to them all – but be bold and willing to take a risk, it’s often where brilliance and mastery are found.

I hope these five strategies empower you in the season of business and leadership that you are in. Sometimes small businesses grow quickly before their foundations are set to support the growth. Or perhaps you’re reading this and you are part of a massive and successful business, no matter... Take a moment to ask yourself, “What of these five practices are already working well in my organization? Is there one of these areas we should make room to intentionally refine and develop?” A simple assessment of current capacity and a look at possible untapped potential is empowering. This simple action can launch you and your team into a new level of operations, relieving stress, increasing productivity and generating healthy momentum.

It’s exciting when you land a new contract, or drop a bid to get in on a ground-breaking new development – but are you and your team ready to deliver? If you would like to further assess capacity please email me at Layla@LaylaFay.com. I invite you to enjoy an exploratory call that will help you maximize your capacity and create a personal success plan.

Our region needs leaders at the top of their game operating in wisdom to bring strategic innovation that supports our community and economy. You are part of the solution and we need you at your best! l